Ask Dr. Potato

Q: I’ve heard that the price of beef is going to remain high until 2015 because last year’s drought forced a reduction in herds. The same thing seems to be happening with pork and chicken costs per pound and even shrimp is in a down cycle for availability.  While I don't want to scare customers away with higher entree prices or visually smaller cuts of meat on the plate, what can I do to reduce my costs?

Q: How did the Idaho Potato Commission handle USDA regulations that removed potatoes from school breakfast and lunch menus?   And how many potatoes are used in the school lunch program?

Q: Can I poke my baked potatoes the night before and store them at room temperature overnight?

Q: While I’ve never come up short brainstorming great foods with potatoes as the main ingredient, I was delighted to see that Idaho Potato’s recipe section goes above and beyond the standard hash browns and casseroles and even offers some intriguing dessert options. My company is having a cook-off, and my first instinct is to go all in with a classic staple like mashed potatoes, but I figure I won’t be alone in this strategy. What is my surest bet in winning over as many taste buds as possible? Stick with a traditional recipe, do traditional with a twist, or go left-field with a dessert? Can you do me the honor of selecting my recipe?

Q: I made mashed potatoes with sour cream and cream cheese that have been in an airtight container in my refrigerator for a week. Are they safe to eat?

Q: Is it possible to buy frozen sliced potatoes in larger quantities (like potato chips sold in bags but cut thicker) which I can fry finish at my café?

Q: Healthy items on menus were once the bane of successful sales with customers looking at the heart check mark next to a listing on the menu and avoiding it at all costs. Now I find healthy choices are really boosting my sales and traffic and helping to counter the "no" vote when a group comes in for my indulgent burgers and fries. Any examples you might make for healthy potatoes?

Q: I run a barbecue website where I teach my readers to use thermometers to measure doneness. However, I can’t find the ideal temperature for a baked potato. At what temperature is a baked potato done?

Q: I want to bake 50 medium-sized Idaho potatoes in roaster ovens. The temperature of the roaster goes up to 400 degrees. With 25 baker potatoes jammed into each roaster, how long will they take to bake?

Q: What is the average length and circumference of a raw potato?